About us

Hem Zaden B.V. is a privately owned company, established in 1918 in Hem, a small village located close to Enkhuizen in West-Friesland (the Netherlands), home of the Dutch seed industry.

We are specialized in the production and wholesale of open-pollinated flower and herb seeds of all types. Over 3.000 different annual, biennial and perennial flower and herb seed varieties are produced in many different countries on both hemispheres. This makes Hem Zaden the world's largest producer of open-pollinated flower seeds. During the production period, the crop is monitored on a regular base by well trained staff to ensure a consistent quality.

Each year in summer, we grow and test samples of each seed lot produced by the company in the previous season in a 10.000 square meter trial field; this to check whether the varieties are true to type,mixtures are balanced with an appropriate portion of colors and whether labeling is correct.

As soon as seeds have been harvested in different countries around the world, they are shipped to our facilities in the Netherlands for cleaning, processing and testing. All seeds are tested on germination in our own laboratory if they comply with international trade standards.

Hem Zaden flower seed varieties are suited for home garden use only and are not suited for production of plants by professional growers. Primarily, we sell to producers of seed packets for home gardeners. Orders are individually prepared, packed and shipped by customers’ preferred shipping method. Once it has arrived at the seed packet producer, the seed is packed in a pictorial packet. Distributed by retailers like flower shops, supermarkets and garden centers. These seed packets finally find their way to the consumer or end user.